A lyrical portrait of a rural Southern California family’s inner lives, their relationship to their ever-shifting landscape, and their growing alienation with each other, "Medeas" is the acclaimed debut feature of Italian-born filmmaker Andrea Pallaoro.

There will again be a wide range of German films in the program when the Venice International Film Festival opens its doors for the 71st time on 27 August 2014 as the world's oldest existing film festival. German cinema is also prominently represented at the most important North American festival in...